Lab Members

Elina Birmingham
Associate Professor
Faculty of Education
Simon Fraser University
email: ebirming@sfu.ca

Faculty Profile Page:  https://www.sfu.ca/education/faculty-profiles/ebirmingham.html

Behnaz Bahmei is a postdoctoral researcher in the lab. She received her PhD from the School of Mechatronics Systems Engineering, Simon Fraser University.  She received her M.Sc. degree in mechanical engineering from K. N. Toosi University of Technology, Tehran, Iran in 2014. Behnaz is proficient in computer programming with the focus on machine learning and deep learning for multiple applications including Computer Vision, Recommendation Systems and Signal Processing. Behnaz joined our group in May 2018 as an artificial intelligence specialist. She is currently working on the sound identification for studying auditory sensitivity in people with ASD.

Guangqian Grace Lyu is a PhD student in the educational psychology program at Simon Fraser University, supervised by Dr. Elina Birmingham. She received her M.Sc. degrees in forensic psychology and educational psychology in the UK in 2010 and 2019. Grace joined our group in 2023 and is currently working on the cross-cultural perspective of camouflaging, autism stigma, and social interaction among autistic people and their families with immigrant backgrounds.

Shahrzad Motaghedi is a PhD student in Educational Psychology at Simon Fraser University, beginning her studies in 2023 under the supervision of Dr. Elina Birmingham. Her research focuses on including autistic students within the public school system, aiming to enhance educational experiences and outcomes for neurodiverse learners.

Meryssa Waite is a PhD student in the Clinical Psychology program. Her research is co-supervised by Dr. Elina Birmingham. She received her MA in Clinical Psychology at SFU and her BSc (Hons.) in Psychology at the University of Victoria. She is currently a research assistant working on the sound sensitivity project.

Alana Pace is an MA student in Counselling Psychology, supervised by Dr. Elina Birmingham. She completed her BA (Hons.) under the supervision of Dr. Grace Iarocci. Her research interests include autism acceptance, camouflaging, and parental perceptions of neurodivergence.

Ashkan Tavassoli joined our group in 2020 and is currently working on one-shot learning for environmental sound classification, for an intervention to support autistic children and youth with decreased sound tolerance.

Bradley Karstadt recently graduated from UBC with a B.Sc in Cognitive Systems. He is currently working as a research assistant for Dr. Birmingham examining the effects of social vs. non-social cues on the prioritization of adult attention in realistic environments.

Rebekah Stevens is in her last semester of her Linguistics & Indigenous Studies joint major program, with a minor in Psychology. Rebekah hopes to pursue a Masters in Speech-Language Pathology and is currently working with autistic children as a speech-language pathology assistant. She is also a research assistant for Dr. Birmingham, working on the sound sensitivity project.

Marissa Zhu graduated SFU with a BA in Psychology and an extended minor in Linguistics. Additionally, she completed the Certificate in the Linguistics of Speech Science. Currently she is working as a speech-language pathology assistant for children with developmental disabilities and volunteers as a program assistant for After Stroke BC. Marissa is a part of the sound sensitivity project in Dr. Birmingham’s lab.

Sarah Lee is in her 4^th year of undergraduate studies at SFU. She is majoring in Linguistics with a minor in Learning and Developmental Disabilities, and a certificate in Speech Sciences. She is aiming to pursue a Master’s in Speech-Language Pathology and has experience working with neurodivergent children through speech therapy, tutoring, volunteering, and coaching. Sarah volunteers for Dr. Birmingham on the sound sensitivity project.

John Yang, M.A. (SFU)

Joshua Wiebe, B.A. (SFU)

Rebecca Fisher, B.A. (SFU)

Vidaluz Ortuno Nacho, B.A. (SFU)

Dr. Dominic Trevisan, Ph.D (SFU)

Qiwans (Cindy) Shi, M.A. (SFU)

Nicole Roberts, M.A. (SFU)

Marleis Bowering, B.A. (SFU)

Vivian Qi, B.A. (SFU)

Dawn Chan, M.A. (SFU)

Victoria Athey, M.A. (SFU)

Cathy Lin, B.A. (SFU)

Pamela Plantinga, B.A. (SFU)

Emerson Gaglardi, B.A. (SFU)

Zoe Crane, B.A. (SFU)